Change Your Image
mdcapjr32
Reviews
Illusions (1992)
About as entertaining as a root canal.
This film is like watching paint dry--NOTHING exciting happens. The better part of the film is spent watching Heather Locklear sleeping, having the same bizarre nightmare over and over again. Locklear, Carradine, Samms and Beatty never seem to leave the house, which gives the film an extremely stiff and claustraphobic feel.
Carradine doesn't look much different than he did in "Revenge of the Nerds"; I half-expected Booger to show up. Perhaps that's typecasting, but it caused me to have a real hard time believing his character could actually be married to someone like Locklear. Besides, the dialogue is so plastic and the acting is so wooden than you don't care about their relationship anyway.
Not only do I have trouble belieivng that this film was actually made, but it's even harder to believe that pay movie services still have the audacity to show it. Yes, it's really that bad. And the voiceover by Locklear's character does sound like it was recorded by someone else.
They recommend drinking warm milk or counting sheep if you can't get to sleep; I suggest watching this movie. It will knock you out from sheer boredom. I gave it a 1 out of 10; absolutely no redeeming qualities whatsoever.
Office Space (1999)
Absolutely one of the funniest films ever made
The first time I saw this, I laughed so hard my stomach hurt. Based on the previews and the fact that it was written and directed by the same man who gave us "Beavis and Butthead", I'll admit I wasn't expecting a whole lot. Much to my surprise, Mike Judge acquits himself superbly with an excellent film.
"Office Space" isn't just funny--this a low-budget film that puts on a clinic in great dialogue, character development, solid performances and technical competence. In an era of overblown blockbusters, the fact that this film was made for $9 million makes me respect it even more.
As the basics of the plot are evident in the 100+ plus reviews already in this database, I won't delve into that. There are plenty of individual accomplishments worth mentioning, however:
--Gary Cole is outstanding as Bill Lumbergh. The way Cole plays the monotonal, insensitive boss is priceless. He redefines use of the phrases "what's happening?" and "yeaahhh".
--Ron Livingston, a relative unknown, turns in a perfect performance in the lead role of Peter Gibbons. He seamlessly alternates between job-related apathy and GenX schemer.
--Jennifer Aniston--not usually one of my favorite actresses--is solid as Joanna, Peter's love interest. She is underused, but the scene where she tells off Chotchkie's manager Stan (played by Mike Judge himself, billed as William King) makes her appearance more than worthwhile.
--Quiz your friends as to the identity of the actor playing the nebbish Milton. Most will never guess that it's Stephen Root, the same guy who played flamboyant radio station owner Jimmy James on TV's "NewsRadio".
--Finally, John C. McGinley as Bob Slydell (one-half of the consultant duo brought into downsize Initech) is just too funny. His delivery and facial expressions alone are good for laughs, not even counting his dialogue.
I could keep on going--the dream sequences; the gang-style beating suffered by the uncooperative HP printer--and this review would take an hour to read. Two things sum it up for me: first, if you're one of those people who finds yourself randomnly quoting great movie lines with your friends, you'll be doing "Office Space" dialogue for a month. Secondly, for a movie that got little press and spent almost no time in theaters, this film has logged well over 2000 votes at IMDb with a very high score. "Office Space" has become a cult movie classic for very good reasons--see it as soon as you can.
The Settlement (1999)
An entertaining, unpretentious little film
I love finding lesser-known films that I haven't necessarily heard of before. The beauty of owning a DSS with a full premium movie package is that these kinds of films pop up regularly, although for every one worth watching you'll wade through five that stink. I ran across "The Settlement" last night and was actually quite impressed.
The gist of it: John Reilly and William Fichter play two guys who run a shady business wherein they buy out life insurance policies from dying customers. The clients get some cash before they die, and when they eventually kick off Reilly and Fichter collect the full benefit payout on the policy. Their business has hit the skids, however, and on the brink of bankruptcy in walks Barbara (Kelly McGillis). She's a terminal cancer patient with three months to live. For a $500,000 buyout she'll sign over her $2 million dollar policy.
As this is a much bigger deal than they are accustomed to and since they are nearly broke, Reilly and Fichter have to resort to some questionable means to obtain the $500,000. Reilly's character wants out of the business altogether but has a family to worry about. Fichter is the single, shoot-from-the-hip sort who acts now and worries about the consequences later. He has to convince Reilly that this is the deal they've been waiting for and that it will solve their financial problems once and for all. Conversations between the aggravated Reilly and the ever-scheming Fichter are well-written and very funny.
Barbara turns out to be something other than she first appears to be, and the movie takes off from there. It's well filmed and acted, and does a nice job of building suspense and the appropriate moments. The storyline is unique and made me wonder how Reilly and Fichter, who seem like decent enough guys, could have gotten involved in such a sleazy line of work.
I gave it 7 out of 10. My only real complaint is that the ending seemed hurried and a little too serious to fit the overall tone of the film. All in all, a good flick and worth your time if you get a chance.